Bobby Ferguson had fake driver's license in 1999, feds show in bid to deny bond

Mar. 25, 2013

These images from the Michigan State Police shows the information prosecutors say Bobby Ferguson submitted to the Secretary of State in order to obtain a fake license. The top photo is Ferguson's actual license information; the bottom is the information submitted for the fake license. / Image courtesy Michigan State Police

Detroit Free Press Staff Writer

The federal government says it has dug up more criminal behavior involving Bobby Ferguson: He got a fake driverís license in 1999.

Federal prosecutors disclosed the information in court documents today in hoping to urge a federal judge to keep Ferguson locked up pending his sentencing in the public corruption case, in which he and former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick were convicted on 34 counts combined.

Both men, who face up to 20 years in prison, have asked to be released on bond pending formal sentencing.

The government is fighting to keep them locked up.

In Fergusonís case, prosecutors argued the convicted contractor canít be trusted for numerous reasons, including that ďin 1999, (Ferguson) fraudulently obtained a Michigan driverís license in the name of ĎAntonio Cortez-Julian Talley.í " The government said it only recently discovered the license, which expired in 2002 and had listed an address associated with one of Fergusonís entities: Four Childrenís Enterprises.

ďThe fact that defendant lied to the Michigan Secretary of State to obtain a fictitious license is evidence of his deception,Ē federal prosecutors wrote. ďIt is unclear why defendant applied for, and obtained, a Michigan driverís license in an alias, but what is obvious is that it cannot have been for any lawful purpose.Ē

Furthermore, the government argued, a criminal history check on the fake driverís license showed a traffic ticket issued in Alabama, where Fergusonís mother lives and ďwhere (Ferguson) is known to have multiple bank accounts.Ē

Ferguson, like Kilpatrick, also has relatives willing to offer their homes as collateral to ensure he will not flee. The mothers of both men have offered their homes as collateral to help their sons get released.

The government has urged U.S. District Judge Nancy Edmunds to reject those offers, arguing that court rules ďexplicitly disfavorĒ the posting of property as collateral in criminal cases. Prosecutors also argue that both men are a flight risk given the hefty sentences they face.

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Ferguson, meanwhile, has a new problem on his hands. He has to find an attorney to represent him in his upcoming bid-rigging trial. The government is retrying Ferguson in the case, which ended in a mistrial last June.

Fergusonís lawyer Gerald Evelyn, who suffered health problems during the public corruption trial, withdrew from the case today for health reasons. He said it feels as if the government is piling on with the bid-rigging case, and has offered no signs of wanting to reach a deal.

"They haven't appeared to budge," Evelyn said of the U.S. Attorneys Office, which is preparing to retry Ferguson on May 21. "I have no reason to believe that this case will be pled out."

And Ferguson, Evelyn stressed, "still maintains his innocence."

When asked whether he believes the government is piling on, Evelyn said, "It feels that way. Now whether they intend that or not, I don't know, but it certainly has that feeling."

Ferguson has paid for his own lawyers so far. While he's entitled to apply for court-appointed counsel if he can prove he can't afford his own lawyer, Evelyn said, "He's trying very hard not to" do that.

Ferguson, who was in U.S. District Court today for arraignment on the bid-rigging charges, expressed concern with finding a new attorney who can adequately prepare for the case by May 21.

"For me to be represented by a qualified attorney, it would take a year to come up to speed," Ferguson told U.S. District Judge David Lawson, noting the case involves "thousands of documents."

Ferguson also stressed that finding an attorney when you're in prison isn't easy.

"I don't have access to anything," Ferguson said. "At Milan, all I have is a phone."

But he has no privacy and no place to talk to or interview lawyers, Ferguson said.

Ferguson is being detained at a federal prison in Milan, where he and Kilpatrick have been detained since getting convicted March 11 on 34 counts combined for running a criminal enterprise through the mayorís office to get rich. Both men each face up to 20 years in prison, although a sentencing date has not yet been scheduled.

Evelyn said that Ferguson appears to be holding up well.

"He's doing the best he can. He's a tough guy, he's a stand up guy," Evelyn said, adding Ferguson also has been attending regular Bible study sessions in prison.

Fergusonís upcoming trial involves charges that he and two associates rigged bids so that Ferguson would win a nearly $12-million contract for a low income housing project on the cityís southwest side. Ferguson also faces gun charges for, the government says, unlawfully possessing weapons. Ferguson was convicted of pistol whipping an employee in 2005, which make it unlawful for him to possess any guns. Prosecutors allege that since then, they have found guns in Fergusonís office.